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Vor
The Vor, otherwise known as the Vor class, were the military caste and the aristocracy of the planet Barrayar. Barrayarans who were not Vor are occasionally referred to in the books as plebes or proles. Vor status is considered genetic, hereditary, and inescapable. All Vor surnames began with the syllable Vor-'', often prefixed to a recognizable surname from some Earth nation (e.g. ''Vorsmythe). The prefix Vor-'' was dropped during the officer candidacy exams for the Barrayaran Imperial Service (though not in the service itself) to emphasize the ideal of meritocracy. While Vor men are generally involved in military or government service the women often lead sheltered lives at home raising children. One Vor privilege was the right to own swords. The traditional armament of a Vor warrior was a set of two swords, a longsword and a short sword. Officers who were Vor wore the two swords with their Imperial Service parade uniforms. Vor women carried a Vorfemme knife. History of Vor The Vor caste was originally open to new members, and the Emperor could declare a family Vor. This practice ceased over time. Function of Vor The Vor function as the aristocratic caste, and are given privileged military status. Historically, no Vor could be denied a commanding role in the military, regardless of incompetent, though Aral Vorkosigan's Regency shifted the military into more of a meritocracy. Despite this, High Vor commanders are treated with more reverence and respect than their non-Vor counterparts. During the Time of Isolation, it was a crime for a non-Vor male have a Vor woman lover; it was considered "stealing her honor", and punishable by death. Levels of Vor High Vor The term "High Vor" does not appear to have official standing within Barrayaran society, but is used informally by characters to refer to the upper-most, aristocratic portion of the Vor. The Vor were a military caste, and while all Vor had certain legal privileges and responsibilities Vor status does not necessarily denote wealth or political power. All aristocrats were Vor, but only a small portion of Vor are aristocrats. There are sixty Districts on Barrayar, each governed by a Vor with the title 'Count. On Barrayar, Count derives from accountant, as they were originally Imperial Tax Collectors and Accountants. Members of a Count's immediate family were also titled. The heir, usually the eldest son of the Count, was Lord (Surname); his wife was Lady (Surname). Other children of a Count are called Lord or Lady (Forename) (Surname), e.g. Lord Mark Vorkosigan or simply Lord or Lady (Forname) if the surname could be inferred from context. According to the author, other Vor can be referred to as Lord (Surname), and considered High Vor, as a mark of some other form of authority or historical idiosyncrasy. For example, according to Bujold, Ivan Vorpatril is not heir to the Vorpatril Countship, but he, and especially his mother, Alys Vorpatril, are High Vor. This is largely because Padma Vorpatril, Alys's husband and Ivan's father, was descended from Prince Xav Vorbarra (and thus next in line after Aral Vorkosigan as a potential claimant to the throne) and also because Alys's role as Gregor's social caretaker gives her a measure of power and respect. In some cases the title is tied to a position, notably the Imperial Auditors are styled Lord Auditor (Surname). If a person has a military rank or holds an Imperial appointment, their rank precedes the title: General Count Piotr Vorkosigan, Prime Minister Count Aral Vorkosigan, Imperial Auditor Lord Vorkosigan etc. Oaths of the Vor The Vor caste can offer varyingly strong oaths and promises. Of course, they pledge an oath of service to the emperor and the Imperium when they enter the Military. Additionally, Armsmen swear an oath for life to their Count when taking up their service. Any man can offer his own personal promise. How serious this is can vary but it is usually equivalent to "I promise." But most of the Vor have a high ideal of honor. When they swear by "their word as Vor_name" it is much more equivalent to a serious and heartfelt "I swear to God." It is so strong that men, including Aral Vorkosigan, have been known to kill others for calling them on their word. Vor Names The Vor Counts The following is a list of all Vor names that are confirmed to have a district associated with them. There are 60 such names. These names are not in any particular order though more important names tend to be towards the top. *Vorbarra' - The Imperial family. *'Vorkosigan' - A line of ten Counts (Miles will be No. 11), but few collateral descendants. Thanks to former Regent Aral Vorkosigan, the family enjoys special favor with the Emperor. *'Vorpatril''' - A large clan with a link to the Vorbarra line through Ivan Vorpatril's late father, Padma Xav, a grandson of Prince Xav Vorbarra. *'Vordarian' - Soon after the death of Emperor Ezar, the then Count Vordarian attempted to usurp the throne from the child Emperor Gregor. *'Vorhalas' - Compensating for the treason of his sons Evon and Carl in Vordarian's Pretendership, the current Count Vorhalas is the most loyal, upright and conservative member of the Council, but no friend to the Vorkosigans. *'Vorrutyer' - A large clan infamous for erratic or insane personalities. Aral Vorkosigan's first wife, who took many lovers and committed suicide, was a Vorrutyer, as was Aral's male lover, the corrupt and sadistic Ges Vorrutyer. Aral himself is descended from Count "Le Sanguinaire" Pierre Vorrutyer, or Bloody Pierre. The last Count Vorrutyer, Pierre, Vorrutyer II, was eccentric if not actually mad. His sister Lady Donna went to Beta Colony to be surgically changed into a man so she could inherit the title as Lord Dono, over her malicious cousin Richars, while her foppish drunkard cousin Byerly used his contacts to lay the groundwork at home. *'Vortala' - Count Vortala was Emperor Ezar's last Prime Minister, a reformer who mistakenly tried to fix Barrayaran society from the top down. *'Vordrozda' - Miles Vorkosigan exposed a Count Vordrozda as a traitor, who attempted to have his cousin Ivan conveniently disappear as the opening act of a Byzantine plot to become heir to the Imperium. *'Vorbretten' - Friends of Miles, the current Count was discovered to have a Cetagandan ancestor, leading to an impeachment trial before the Council of Counts, and it also led to him being ridiculed, often called René ghem-Bretten. The Vorbrettens born after the Cetagandan occupation manifested musical talents, no doubt a result of inheriting carefully designed Cetagandan genes. *'Vorsmythe' - Industrialist. Miles Vorkosigan told his clone-brother Mark to speak with Vorsmythe about his "Butter Bugs" *'Vorvolk' - The current Count, Henri, is one of Emperor Gregor's close friends and one of only a few Counts near in age to the Emperor. *'Vortrifrani' - The current Count Vortrifrani was suspected of a plot to crash an empty space freighter onto the Imperial Palace, though ImpSec were unable to link him to the actual saboteurs. *'Vorlopoulos'- Famous for Vorlopoulos's Law which limits each Count to only 20 armsmen and makes starting a private army treason for a Vor Lord. *'Vorbataille' - Lord Vorbataille is mentioned as Count's heir in Winterfair Gifts. *'Vortugalov' *'Vorinnis' *'Vorkalloner' *'Vormoncrief' *'Vorville' *'Vorpinski' *'Vortaine' *'Vorvolynkin' *'Vormuir' *'Vorgarin' *'Vorfolse' *'Vorlakial' *'Vortashpula' *'Vortienne' *'Vorharopulos' *'Vorvayne' - The sixth Countess Vorvayne starved herself to death at her husband's feet after he was convicted of treason.Komarr *'Vorob'yev' - Lord Vorob'yev was the Barrayaran Ambassador to Cetaganda. Vorob'yev" is an actual Russian surname derived from vorobey meaning "sparrow. Vorob'yev house livery was red and black. *'Vorreedi' - Lord Vorreedi was entitled to wear a House uniform Other Vor names The following is a list of Vor names that come up during the series but do not appear to have a district on Barrayar associated with them. It is possible, even likely, that all Vor names represent a district, however the novels have been very ambiguous with respect to these names. These names are in no particular order. *'Voraronberg' - member of Emperor's staff *'Vorberg' - Barrayaran Imperial Security courier *'Vorbohn' - "the younger", Lord in charge of the Municipal Guard in Vorbarr Sultana.A Civil Campaign *'Vorgier' - The Imperial Security Captain on the Barrayaran wormhole civilian transfer station in the Komarr system. *'Vorgorov' *'Vorgustafson' - Imperial Auditor, former industrialist *'Vorhovis' - Imperial Auditor *'Vorkeres' - Tatya Vorkeres married Count Vorbretten in *'Vorkraft' - inferred from the warship General Vorkraft *'Vorlaisner' - Imperial Auditor *'Vorlightly' - A historical 'Lady Vorlightly' was married to the sitting emperor, serving as precedent for the social and ceremonial protocol of Gregor's marriage to Laisa Toscane. *'Vormurtos' - Lord *'Vorparadijs' - Imperial Auditor, retired general *'Vorsoisson' - Etienne Vorsoisson was Ekaterin Vorkosigan's first husband. *'Vortalon' - A (in-universe) fictional holovid hero *'Vorthalia' - Mentioned as a heroic legend, such as Vorthalia the Bold or Vorthalia the Loyal. *'Vorthys' - Georg Vorthys. Before becoming an Imperial Auditor, he was a professor of engineering who specialized in failure analysis *'Vortorren' *'Vorvane' *'Vorventa' - Lord Vorventa the Twice Hung was one of only a few people tried for a crime after death. *'Vorwyn' *'Vorzohn' - Eponym of "Vorzohn's dystrophy". No person bearing this name is ever mentioned. Behind the scenes These are obscure, but the word exists in Russian, one of four languages spoken on Barrayar. As вор "Vor" means thief. Most aristocracies arise from warlords, who in turn tend to arise from competing bands of brigands, so this explanation is plausible. The Russian "dvor" means "court", and "dvoryanin" were the "new nobles" created by Ivan the Terrible and Boris Godunov to counterbalance the boyars (old nobles). In the Russian translations of the Vorkosigan saga, though, Vor is rendered as For (Фор); the novel The Vor Game is called Igra Forov/Игра Форов ("The Game of the Fors") in Russian. Notes and references External links